Nigel Adkins revealed his eagerness to return to Sparrows Lane and maximise training time during the international break before the Addicks return to action on Good Friday at Doncaster Rovers.
“We have an opportunity now with this break, instead of having to go into another game, to actually get to know the players,” said the 56-year-old. “I’m really excited about getting back on the training field and working with the players in preparation for the remaining games.
“There’s excellent medical staff here and there’s been a plan put in place for the days in, days off leading to the Doncaster game. The lads will actually have a Sunday and a Monday off, and I’ve got a great opportunity to go and watch the under-23s on Monday up at Coventry.
“I’ve got a good couple of weeks lined up where I can see where we can help improve everybody. From my point of view, we want to be very good in possession of the ball, be energetic, and all the things you want to do moving forward. We’ve got an opportunity to get amongst the players, get to know them all, find out their strengths and how we can move forward, plan for the next game, and obviously the principles of play that we are looking for.”
Reflecting on the result, the Charlton boss said it was a point gained while praising the Dons, but admitted his side must improve defensively ahead of the League One run-in.
“The conclusion is I don’t think Wimbledon have lost their last five games. I thought they were very good in how they approached it. We’ve got a point away from home trying to build on the positives from that point of view, but you can’t be conceding two goals a game if you want to go and win things consistently.
“We’re still in sixth position but, for me, there’s a great opportunity to watch the game back and see what we can go and learn and move forward, and implement things for the remaining nine games because we’re still very much in the hunt.”
Article by James Waller